Arthur: Madness in Wonderland
by Ain1derland
Summary: Arthur and his family have recently moved from cold London to sunny SoCal and so far Arthur is having difficultly adjusting. Just as things seem to be getting better when his new crush Alfred starts to notice him, things take a turn for the strange when the white rabbit comes to fetch him and tells him that he is destined to be the new ruler of Wonderland. Curiouser and Curiouser.
1. In Which Arthur Falls out of Reality

**Hey there! It's Kat again with a new story. So far probably one completed but so many unfinished. I'll get to them eventually but right now this was what I can get out something I've recently been going through. So I guess you can say that my hiatus is now over but who knows what will happen once I start school again, though unlike last year my classes won't be very stressful at all and the only AP class I'm taking during senior year is AP Studio Art. Anyway enough blabbling about my problems.**

**I've been playing a lot of Alice: Madness Returns and watching all the versions of Alice movies and during SAT prep classes over the summer I've begun writing this down. This is inspired by the game for the most part but it's not going to be like the Hetalia version of it. There will be violence and action, as well as romance and fantasy. I have sort of a good idea what I want for this story but I'm still building it up.**

**DISCLAIMER: Who honestly believes I own Hetalia?**

**Happy readings!**

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Arthur stared out of the window of his pre-calculus class, sighing in boredom and staring at the butterfly that fluttered outside freely. Oh how he wished he was the butterfly at the moment. Anything in order to get out of this horrid class. He could care less about graphs and equations. The bell rang loudly, signalling the end of class, causing the other students to rush off of their seats and out of the door. They didn't even catch a single word their teacher had said about their weekend assignment.

Slowly he got up from his seat and walked towards the door, but he was stopped when the teacher called him.

"Arthur, can I have a word with you?"

The blonde turned around and nodded, walking over to his teacher's desk and putting his gentlemanly act despite how much he really wanted to leave.

"Yes, Mr. Lopez? What do you want to talk about?"

Mr. Lopez, being the kind of teacher who cared for his students' wellbeing outside of school, checked in with Arthur out of pure concern.

"How are you adjusting to things here? I know how tough it can be, moving to completely different country and starting over once again." He offered a light smile, trying to make him more comfortable.

Arthur, knowing already that his teacher was originally from Mexico, smiled and answered, "Things are going quite good, Mr. Lopez. Thank you very much for asking. Is that all?"

Despite how content the Briton seemed, Mr. Lopez wasn't very convinced, but he didn't want to push anything upon him and smiled back.

"That's great. I'm glad to hear that things are going well for you. Just… if you ever need anyone's ear, mine is always available."

Arthur took his words into consideration, but he just settled for a nod.

"Thank you, Mr. Lopez. I'll keep that offer in mind."

Wanting to avoid further conversation, he left the room and said bye to his teacher. He lied, of course, but he didn't really feel like talking about his first uneventful and mundane week here. At least it wasn't a shitty one, but it hadn't been so great. Arthur hadn't made one single friend since his arrival here and he easily got lost in his new school. Why did American high schools have to be so huge? At least it was Friday though not much was planned for the weekend except unpacking the rest of his stuff.

He walked down the hallway, minding his own business and overhearing other's plans for the weekend. No one really bothered him, which was good yet also somewhat irritating. It wasn't that no one gave a shit about the new student (which actually, now that he thought about it, it was) but mainly because this school had so many people that you wouldn't notice anyone new and if they did they'd just say he was the new white kid. No one really knew he was from England and good that they didn't otherwise all the girls would ask him annoying questions about One Direction and want him to be his boyfriend because all British males seemed like the perfect boyfriends to have (they obviously don't know what Chavs are then).

He sighed to himself, just wanting to stop over thinking about menial things. But then something had caught his ear.

"Yeah dude, Jonesy is having another of his parties at his house this weekend. It's going to be wild!"

He turned to his side and saw a group of guys, along with a few girls who honestly in his opinion wore too much make-up and had tiny shorts agreeing with him and hyping up about the event.

He sighed yet again, knowing he was not invited and wishing he was. They were talking about Alfred Jones, the other white kid who attended this school, and perhaps the most attractive guy around. Oh dear God the thought of that boy made Arthur want to swoon buy he kept a hold of himself, he had to maintain his composure after all. He didn't want to look like an idiot after all. A gay idiot at that. He had no idea how things were around here in Sylmar and the general public opinion about homosexuality, but judging by the large Latino population who were raised by traditional catholic parents…

Eh he'd rather not find out. No one really worth looking at around here, except Jones, who most likely was straight, the most gorgeous guy on campus. Star athlete, physics and math genius (as he had found out in classes he shared with him) and on top of that he was known as being the nicest guy around.

It made Arthur tingle inside, wanting to know more about this mysterious Alfred Jones. How the hell could he keep up with his rumoured good grades with his roaring popularity and big legendary parties? The Briton didn't know but at this point he would settle for magic.

His thoughts were caught off when he bumped into someone else in the hall, causing him to fall down onto his bum in front of a bunch of other people he was in classes with. Fantastic… The new kid is a complete klutz.

"Oops! I'm so sorry dude, I wasn't paying attention!" Arthur heard the other say to him.

Just as he was about to say something sarcastic and rude, he recognised the voice and looked directly at the person he had just bumped into. There was a steam hammer in his chest and his throat went dry as he stared into the other's face.

Out of all the people he had to bump into, it had to be Alfred Fucking Jones.

The American waited for the other's response, but all he got was just staring.

"Uh um… Are you alright? I didn't hit ya too hard, did I?"

Arthur shook his head automatically, knowing he couldn't really formulate a single intelligible sound at the moment.

Alfred smiled and then gained a curious look. "Say, you're new aren't you? I've heard rumours about a new kid coming in from London, England so I'm assuming that's you, right?"

Arthur managed to nod, still not able to speak. _Oh dear God, please give me the strength not to fall into his arms and look deeply into those sparkling blue eyes of his._

"Oh that's awesome! I bet it must be really cool over there!" Alfred said excitedly.

Arthur arched an eyebrow and rolled his eyes.

"Oh please, it rains most of the time and the people are just normal people. Nothing as glorious as what you would see on Harry Potter or Doctor. I swear Television glorifies us English people, making us look like Gods or something." He finally said.

Well he certainly surprised himself there. He actually managed to speak to THE Alfred Jones.

Alfred didn't really know what to say, but he smiled in amusement. "Now I know what Harry Potter is, but what's Doctor Who?"

Arthur gasped when he heard that.

"Doctor Who!? Well it's only one of Britain's greatest national treasures! Been going on for a century now! Haven't you ever heard of the 9,000 year old time lord that travels through dimensions in a blue police call box otherwise known as the Tardis!?"

It was quiet for a while and it only took Arthur a few seconds to realise he just made a fool out of himself in front of Alfred and the other group of people near him.

_Oh Bloody Hell! I've made myself look like an absolute freak in front of him and those other people! Good Job, Arthur Kirkland! Fantastic! Now he'll avoid me and those people will tell everyone else how the new kid from England is weird and how no one should get near to him. Just perfect!_

Instead of utter disturbance and disgust as the Briton was expecting, rather he got a surprise. The American simply just smiled at him and chuckled at Arthur's passion. He thought it was rather cute actually.

"Well now that you mention it… I do see some of those blue police boxes or whatever you called it… The Tardis? Right! Yeah, I do see them around some stores, like in this awesome place at City Walk where they sell like a shitload of awesome stuff and comics. We should go together sometime and hang out. Then you can tell me more about Doctor Who. It sounds really interesting."

The boy had Arthur blushing at this point, hardly able to even contain himself.

"Uh yes… That sounds wonderful. I'd… I'd like that."

"Great!" Alfred gained a grin large enough that it stretched from ear to ear. He quickly got some paper and a pen out of his bag, writing his number and name on the paper and then handed it to Arthur.

"Here. That's my cell number. Let's keep in touch… Uh… Oh shit. I never got your name. Sorry about that, but do you mind telling me?"

Arthur shook his head, his heart beating fast like a jackrabbit hopping as he took the piece of paper.

"No, not at all… It's Arthur. Arthur Kirkland. And I already know your name, Alfred."

The American smiled and put his bag back on his bag, reaching his hand out towards Arthur.

"Arthur… It's perfect. Well nice meeting you. Text me sometime. And by the way, I like your accent. It's pretty sexy."

As if the Briton wasn't already such a mess on the inside, it made it worse. He reached out to grab the American's hand and shook it, wanting to practically fall into his arms and surrender any sense he still had. His hand felt so warm and big, but in a very comforting way. So familiar as well… Eventually though the handshake was broken off and the feeling disappeared.

"Well I gotta go. Remember, text me Arthur. I'll be waiting." And like that Alfred walked away, towards people who seemed to be his friends.

"Bye." Whispered Arthur as he watched him walk away.

He couldn't believe it… Alfred Jones gave him his phone number and said he wanted to hang out with him… Not that like it was a date or anything! But still… It was something. Arthur licked his lips as he looked at the piece of paper and sighed again, shoving it into his pocket.

He could hear the group of friends near him talk about him, about his nationality and he also overheard something about gay but he didn't care. Suddenly America didn't seem so bad anymore for the 16 year old. Perhaps Suburban Los Angeles had its perks after all.

_**Wonderland**_

The walk home wasn't too long. Arthur's new home was located in what the new neighbours claimed to be the nicer part of Sylmar, but honestly it all looked very… what's the American term again? Oh right, ghetto. But it was slightly a bit of an improvement from the other side of Sylmar. His father bought what used to be a small ranch, once occupied by many animals. With the amount of land, it also came with a large home, enough to fit a family of six (including Arthur). In the house lived Richard Kirkland, the father and provider of the family, William, the oldest child, Sean and Connor, fraternal twins who were identically mischievous and made it a mission to make Arthur's life as miserable as possible, Peter, the youngest and most annoying of the Kirkland boys, and of course Arthur, the mature and intelligent one of the bunch.

Unfortunately Mrs. Kirkland isn't around in the picture anymore. Alice Kirkland was one of the most beautiful women around in London, as her husband always says when speaking of her. She was clever, resourceful, and overall a great mother. One hell of a woman at that as well, having given birth to 5 boys and raising them up until her untimely death. Arthur tried to not think about her. The memory of her death just made him depressed and all the wonderful memories he had of her just made it more painful.

Arthur finally arrived home, closing the door behind him and throwing his bag to the side. He'd come for it later on once he finished organising his room. With the loud clanking noise his boots made on the floor, his presence was made known and coming from the kitchen was William, dressed in a suit.

The blonde stared at his brother strangely. "Uh William… Why are you dressed like that?"

The redhead grinned, crossing his arms as he tisked at his brother.

"Why hello there! Nice seeing you as well, Artie my brother. Thank you for the greeting."

Arthur rolled his eyes, snorting a bit. "Hello Will. Now please tell me why you're in a suit."

Will continued onto his grin, looking very much in a good mood. "I had a job interview today and well… I got hired!"

The other was a bit surprised but overall glad for his brother. "Oh that's great! Where at did you get the job?"

"KFC, but hey it's something. And once the new semester starts at the local college, I'll start taking classes."

Arthur smiled at William. America was doing some good for his family. Dad got a new job, which is giving him a larger wage than what he got back in England and now Will finally got a job. He would've never got one back home, especially with the reputation he had. Anyone with a sane mind knew they shouldn't hire him, which was sad but Arthur understood why. Good he had no references here in California.

Suddenly he heard knocks coming from the front window of the house.

"What was that?" Arthur asked in alarm, turning to the window.

His brother looked at him strangely. "What was what?"

Arthur turned to William, confused. "The knocking on the window. Did you not hear it?"

Will shook his head, arching his brow. "No. Are you alright? I know I have my fair share of madness, but perhaps now it's getting to you."

Arthur was still confused though. He could have sworn he heard something.

"I think I'll go upstairs and take a nap. I'm tired after all. See you later." He didn't bother to wait for his brother's response and went straight towards his room.

He shut the door to his room and sighed, looking around and remembering he was no longer in the UK. His clothes were mostly already in his drawers and he was still waiting for his dad to put up that new bookshelf he promised to do this weekend. God knows if he'll ever get to doing it though.

He slumped onto his bed and lay down, closing his eyes for a moment and relax. He's had quite the afternoon and he deserve this moment of peace and quiet. Then afterwards he'd text Alfred… Oh Alfred Jones.

Then he heard that knocking sound once again. He abruptly opened his eyes, sat up and looked at his window see a figure passing by quickly.

"What the bloody hell?" He spoke to himself as he got up and went towards his window. He looked outside to see if anything was there, but nothing. Someone could have been throwing rocks at his window, but that didn't explain the thing he just saw pass by his window. That and no one could easily hide in broad daylight. Perhaps he was going a bit mad. William would have heard it if it was real after all.

He sighed and turned away from the window. He should just forget about it.

"Arthur, we have no time at all for you to be dawdling around! First you were flirting with that boy and now this! We're already late!'

The Briton looked down and widened his eyes as he saw a white rabbit with beady red eyes wearing a waistcoat and holding a pocket watch in his hand stood in front of him.

Naturally anyone would scream but at the moment Arthur was too much in shock to even bother.

_It's official… I'm mad, mad as a hatter._

The rabbit stared at Arthur back blankly, acting as if this was completely normal and not out of the ordinary, tapping his foot impatiently on the ground and crossing his arms.

"What's the matter? Never seen a rabbit before?"

Arthur managed to muster up a response, though still in shock and with a terrified and confused voice. "Not one who speaks and wears clothing…"

The rabbit sighed and put his watch back into his coat.

"I'm assuming your mother never explained to you anything, which means once we get to Wonderland I'll have Cheshire explain everything."

The rabbit mentioning his mother and Wonderland seemed to intrigue Arthur yet all at the same time he knew this was not real. Wonderland was just a made up place that mother always used as a location in her stories, which included her and sometimes grandma as the characters.

"Sure Wonderland… Of course. Let me just close my eyes and pretend that I'm not going bonkers. I'm just tired, that's all." He said, closing his eyes and wishing this was not happening in his mind.

The white rabbit really did not have any time for this nonsense at all. He snapped his fingers, opening up a vortex at the bottom of Arthur's room. The Briton suddenly felt the ground underneath him disappear and when he opened his eyes he found that he was not standing on anything. Once he realised this, he began to fall down, screaming bloody murder as he fell down and down, practically flailing around. If this was a dream, he absolutely hated it and he wanted to wake up from it.

He looked around, frightened for his dear life, finding that many inanimate objects were just floating in mid-air, most of them clocks, and that beside him the rabbit fell calmly, as if he had done this before. This had pissed the Briton off as he began to scream at the rabbit.

"What did you do to my room!? Stop with this falling before I hit the ground and die, you stupid rabbit!"

Rabbit really didn't think this would be full of drama, but unfortunately it was. Teenagers… Truly unnecessarily dramatic in his opinion, just like his mother. He decided on saying nothing until they finally reached Wonderland, just riding the way down out.

Unlike rabbit, Arthur was panicking as he knew he was going to be dying. Fantastic… Just as he got the phone number of the hottest guy in school! Just as he thought he was going to become a human pancake, a flash of light enveloped him and rabbit, giving a very relaxing feeling to Arthur. He closed his eyes momentarily and then opened them again, finding now that he was floating slowly down to the ground. His clothing had also changed into a dashing looking suit. A velvet coloured jacket with a black waistcoat, black trousers, a velvet top hat ripped in some parts, and his favourite pair of black boots that actually did the suit some justice.

He landed onto the ground, next to the rabbit, no longer screaming or upset at all. He looked at his surroundings, finding he was in an endless hallway filled with many doors. He looked up to see the hole he had come from.

It was all very clear to him now where exactly he was at. The place his mother always told him about as a child. A place he always wished he could one day visit.

"This place… It's Wonderland."

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**So there's the first chapter of Arthur: Madness in Wonderland. I think that went pretty okay. I know I will probably get some criticism for Arthur being a bit OOC when talking with Alfred but if you didn't notice he was totally flirting with him! Don't worry though! Alfred will prove to Arthur he still has an idiotic side and you'll see the usual behaviour Arthur has towards Alfred in the series as well, but of course he has the hots for him so he'll forgive him for it.**

**Oh and if I made a mistake with anything or about describing Doctor Who, please tell me. I've just started to watch it and I'm still a bit unclear about it though I believe I got it. And yes, Sylmar is a real place in Suburban Los Angeles. It's my hometown actually and like described in the story there are certainly nice parts as well as ghetto areas. Like seriously, I live in the ghetto side of it and oh how I wished I lived in those nice houses near the mountains. And about the general opinion of the LGBT community where I'm from, it's really mixed. Some people really couldn't care less about other's sexuality, but it varies. Most teenagers in my area really won't pick at you for being gay and just know you will have support from others no matter what. When I came out I discovered that about my community so it was really great.**

**And also, before I end this ridiculously long A/N, I need a beta like badly for this story. As I reread this before publishing it, I noticed I made a crap load of errors. I'm okay with spelling, but sometimes I put in the wrong words for some reason and I forget to put in words. It's weird but I do that when I write. So PM if you're interested and we'll see from there. Anyway, I gotta go now and hopefully I have this next chapter out soon. I'm planning to make them around this length and sometimes it may longer. So until next time!**


	2. In Which Arthur Encounters Allies

**Hey dudes. Here's another chapter of Arthur: Madness in Wonderland. I've been a bit busy lately which is why I haven't posted this up sooner than what I originally had wanted but at the very least it's here now :D**

**So anyway, here it is and happy readings! **

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Arthur looked around, staring in awe and wonder. He could have never dreamed this up himself, ever. He took a step, realising just how real this all was. What was he supposed to do here in Wonderland?

He looked over to the rabbit, who stared at him impatiently while tapping his foot.

"Why am I here? Surely there's a reason why you came to get me so suddenly. Strangely though after I had just moved to another continent… Is there something going on?" He asked, with suspicions in his mind.

The White Rabbit sighed and looked away.

"I… I would explain but I believe Cheshire would be best suited for the job. For now, let's just get to the Vale of Tears, or what your mother used to call it, the Pool of Tears."

Arthur arched his eyebrow, wondering why it had such a name. As he was about to ask, Rabbit hopped down the hall, looking back at the Briton and urging him to follow. Arthur did as expected and ran behind the rabbit, wondering where he was heading off to. How were they to get out of this place? The endless hall wasn't so endless after all since they had finally approached a door at the end. Rabbit opened the door, entering quickly and the teen following behind quickly.

The blonde found himself in a plain room, with a 3-legged table in the middle that held a bottle on top of it. He looked around elsewhere and saw a rather small door on one of the walls.

"Where are we supposed to go to now, Rabbit?" He asked, a bit confused.

The White Rabbit didn't answer and only shrunk in size right before Arthur's size, heading for the door and entering it.

Arthur stared in shock and seconds later he became quite annoyed. "Wait a second! How the bloody hell do I even get to be that small!?"

No point in waiting for a response. He knew he wasn't going to be getting one after all. He had a feeling he'd have to figure things out for himself a lot in this world. He looked around the room, trying to see if perhaps he had missed something could possible help. Nothing, except that bottle with a label that read 'Drink Me' on the table. He went over to the table and picked up the bottle, examining the blue liquid.

"I remember mother telling me that drinking things in Wonderland would shrink me and eating things would help me grow. Should I trust this strange liquid and see if that's what it'll do to me?"

He realised he really didn't have many options in this world and he would have to take risks. Arthur opened the bottle by unscrewing the cork, took a deep breath, and then drank from it.

He stopped when he felt himself suddenly shrinking down to size. The bottle was suddenly too heavy for him to hold, causing him to drop it to the ground, shattering the bottle and leaving what looked like large shards of glass. Soon Arthur was about only 3 inches high. He groaned at the thought, thinking he was already way too short for his own good. Or at least he thought so. 5'4 didn't seem very tall to him.

The British teen looked up, observing how far the ceiling was from him now. He looked around and found himself quite amazed by the glass shards. They looked rather beautiful and indeed they were very dangerous as well. He walked around the glass, making his way to the door, hoping to catch up with the rabbit. He opened the door and found that there was a completely different world awaiting him on the other side of the door.

He left the room and entered the Vale of Tears, or Pool of Tears, closing the door behind him. He looked all around, seeing there was a beautiful river flowing through what seemed to be a mix of a forest and rainforest. He saw rocking horse flies fly around, playing with the butter bread flies, near the tall and colourful trees. He looked behind him and saw no trace of the door whence he came from.

"This is so bizarre… yet wonderful." He said to himself.

Arthur thought about the name of this place. The Vale of Tears (or how his mother called it, the Pool of Tears). He remembered his mother's stories about an ancestor of his, also named Alice.

_'__Grandma Alice cried so much in frustration, having to shrink and grow back and forth in order to open that small door. Once she shrunk, she forgot the key. Once she grew, she couldn't fit in the room properly. Her tears caused a pool of tears, eventually finding their way into a beautiful valley full of colourful trees, flowers, and mushrooms. The sweet tears worked as rainfall and ran through as rivers and lakes.'_

He smiled at the memory, forgetting for a moment about everything else.

Rabbit hopped towards him, holding out his pocket watch and looking up at Arthur.

"Now do you remember this place? At least by your mother's words you should know where you are at. You were too interested not to remember."

The blonde nodded, looking down at Rabbit and wondered why now out of all times.

"Yes, I do remember this place from mum's stories. Strangely… its how I've always pictured it," He said as he looked around once more, "The sky is so blue… Never had I seen it like this. Back home in London it was filled with smog so you couldn't see much and even in Sylmar it isn't as blue, despite the lack of pollution."

The two began walking through the valley, Arthur looking at all the creatures around him. He never thought it was genetically possible for some things to exist, but apparently here it didn't matter. Anything could exist.

"Now, we must meet with Cheshire and the others at Hatter's house. They've all been waiting for you for some time and I believe you want answers."

Arthur nodded, humming in agreement. For some reason he didn't want any answers. He wanted to go out for himself and see everything, knowing it would be the only way to cure his curiosity.

After a little more walking, they made it to the woods, the Wonderland woods as Arthur remembered, and deeper in it was the Hatter's house. As they began to see it in sight, the Briton began remembering the Hatter.

"Wait. He's mad… The Mad Hatter. Mum said he was insane, asked the strangest questions, and everyday and time was Tea time for him."

The White Rabbit nodded, knowing himself how much a lunatic Hatter was.

"Ah yes, Mad. Very mad. But everyone here is mad. Including you, Arthur."

Arthur rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Nonsense, I'm not mad at all. If I was, then I'd be locked up in an asylum or mental hospital." He said, trying to defend himself and sounding annoyed.

"But your brother was once in one of those, wasn't he?"

The mention of William made Arthur rethink a little and widen his eyes.

Rabbit continued on though, despite the reaction he saw on the blonde's face. "Your mother was mad, Arthur. Madness runs in your veins. It has for generations. It's the dominant gene and your brothers have inherited some of it. But you are the maddest of them all. You should be honoured though with this privilege."

Arthur didn't say anything, only crossing his arms and keeping silent. He thought about it… Madness. William had a history of it, having to be locked up for some time because of it. And his mother had her moments of being delusional. Not to mention how sometimes Sean and Connor would hear things others wouldn't and not joking about it either. Peter is still young so there was no way of telling how mad he was. But Arthur… He knew just well how mad he was.

They reached the front of the Hatter's house where he saw a group of people… erm creatures gathered around a table set up with tea sets and other snacks you would usually have during teatime. Everyone at the table sensed the pair's presence and immediately stopped all of conversation and looked directly at Arthur.

So there was an oversized hare, which twitched and had huge eyes that just stared at you. He wore a torn up suit, holding a broken tea cup in one hand. Next was a dormouse that was a little larger than the average dormouse, but still not as big as the hare. It wore pyjamas and had a sleepy disposition showing on his face, as if the poor creature were to fall asleep anytime. And then lastly, a man who wore a colourful suit and a top hat with a tag that showed the measurement of 10/6 on it. Needless to say, he was a handsome fellow. His ginger hair suited him, along with those green eyes. Reminded him of William in a way but this man looked deranged and had a different look to him. No doubt that he was the Mad Hatter.

"My friends, I've brought Alice's son, Arthur. There is no doubt that he is the heir of Wonderland and help us take back what is rightfully ours!" Announced the Rabbit with a hopeful tone in his voice. With that being said, a large cheer erupted among the tea guests, smiling and clapping oh so happily. Well at least the Hare and the Dormouse. The Hatter seemed distracted by the new guest, observing him.

The Briton became deeply confused. "What? Help you… What's going on?"

The Hatter smiled at him, chuckling lightly. "I take that you have no idea why you are even here, Arthur. Rabbit, why didn't you explain it to him? My, is that how you drag a guest here? Without telling them what's going on here?"

Arthur looked over at Rabbit suspiciously. "What is he talking about? What's going on in Wonderland?"

"Calm down now, Hatter. Rabbit wanted me to explain to him since he knows I've always had a way with words."

The blonde looked around, wondering who had said that. That wasn't the Hatter and he sure it wasn't the Hare or the Dormouse.

"Oh, where are my manners? It'll certainly help if I were to show you my true self."

Arthur, still confused, didn't expect to see a cat slowly appear in front of him, floating into the thin air with a large grin on his face. He widened his eyes in surprise, now more calm that he knew who the mysterious voice was. Yes, now he remembered. Black body with white stripes covering him all and his trademark grin.

"Cheshire Cat." He simply whispered.

Cheshire nodded, still keeping that grin intact.

"Doesn't take a genius to figure that one out, but yes, you are correct. My, you do look like your mother in so many ways. The blonde hair, green eyes, and even down to the eyebrows."

Arthur glared at the cat, feeling a little self-conscious about his eyebrows. He'd been made fun of his eyebrows ever since he was a child. It made him feel better knowing his mother had the same eyebrows and provided him with hope that it wouldn't be so bad in the future. "Don't make fun of my eyebrows! I like them very much, for your information!" He defended.

Cheshire chuckled, turning in mid-air.

"And even argues like his mother. Oh how we miss Alice. So Arthur, what do you know about Wonderland?"

The blonde crossed his arms, hmphing. He didn't expect the cat to be so cheeky.

"Well up until just an hour ago I thought Wonderland was just a place of make believe the women of my mother's side had made up, but…" He paused, biting his lip and sighed, "I just don't know anymore. To be honest, my memory is fuzzy when it comes to remembering Wonderland in my mother's stories. It's been nearly a decade since I've last heard her voice." He finished, with a dismal tone in his voice.

Everyone felt the upsetting atmosphere. Yes, not only Arthur had been affected by his mother's death, but also the residents of Wonderland.

Cheshire still had his grin, though he wasn't so glad about anything.

"Well part of the reason why we had Rabbit come fetch you involves your mother's death."

Arthur's eyes shifted towards the cat and waited for him to continue.

"A dark force appeared in Wonderland a little over a decade ago. It wasn't so strong at the beginning but eventually it began gaining power. We had summoned your mother to come and help, but she was busy raising you and your other brothers. Then she suddenly got terrible ill. What is it that they call it in your world, that disease?"

"Cancer." Arthur muttered, not wanting to remember the pain.

"Ah yes, Cancer. Well what would you think if I were to tell you that she did not naturally obtain that disease naturally? That something, or rather, someone had given it to her?"

Arthur's eyes widened and he pressed his lips together, shocked by what the Cat was suggesting. Was it even a suggestion? It didn't sound like it was one. He continued to listen, wanting to make sense of all of this madness.

"I know, you may not want to believe me at first, with you growing up with harsh reality facts, but you do know that not everything can be explained logically."

Arthur nodded, calming down a bit. "Yes, I'm aware of that. The diagnosis of her illness was sudden and the doctors couldn't figure out how it happened." He pondered. He looked back at Cheshire, his eyes shifting around to everyone else, and then back to Cheshire.

"Cheshire… What happened to my mum?" He asked softly, his eyes pleading.

Rather than explaining it to the blonde, the grinning cat evaporated into thin air and then his smokiness surrounded Arthur, acting like a very heavy fog in which did not allow you to see at all. The Briton looked around, wondering what was going on. Then foggy smoke disappeared, revealing that he was no longer at the Hatter's house. Rather, he found himself at Tugley Wood, just north of Wonderland Woods where he was just at. It was just as colourful as the other parts of Wonderland, though it resembled a maze more than a forest with signs saying nonsense that he couldn't understand. He had a feeling though that he wasn't exactly in the Wonderland he was just at. It felt… different. He took his first few steps forward, looking around and just observing. Oh what was he thinking? This was his first time roaming around in Wonderland.

"Cheshire, where are you at?" He asked aloud. He surely was getting himself lost. Damn Cat! Leaving him all alone here without any guidance.

Suddenly Arthur stopped wondering about the cat and widened his eyes in surprise as he saw a woman walking towards him on the same path he was in. She was blonde, had green eyes, and her eyebrows…

"Mum." He whispered to himself as he continued to stare at the woman he claimed was his mother.

His mother wore a large red coat, one that covered her whole body. She was trembling so much, that it looked like she was about to give in to the cold. But it wasn't even that cold, Arthur thought. This was how his mother was back home during his final few weeks…

"Mum!" He yelled out as he ran towards her, worry taking over his mind.

She wasn't alright… No! What happened to her?

"Mum! Please! What's wrong!? It's me, mum! It's Arthur!" He continued to shout as he ran.

He then stopped abruptly once he realised she could not hear him. He was invisible to her… Like a ghost. He panted, looking at his mother in worry.

"She cannot see you. No one here in this realm can. We're not in our own time and we cannot risk anyone knowing of our presence here." The Briton turned to his side and saw that Cheshire was next to him, floating into air, looking at Alice, his mother. Although he was always grinning, his eyes often showed his true disposition. At the moment, they showed hurt and pain, something Arthur could relate to.

Suddenly they heard a laugh, a dark and maniacal one, erupt out of nowhere. The teen looked around, trying to see where it was coming from, but there was no sign of anyone else in woods.

"Oh my dear, stupid Alice. Did you really believe you can run from me?"

Arthur hitched his breath at hearing the same voice who laughed speak. "Who's that?" He asked the Cheshire.

Cheshire said nothing. His silence insisted that Arthur kept watching.

Alice, who was still down on the ground, struggled to breathe and clenched her teeth as she felt a sharp jolt of pain run through her. She had trouble standing up, but eventually she did and wrapped herself in her arms.

"Please… I beg of you. I have children I must take care of back home. I cannot leave my family behind so sudden. Whatever it is that you want… I'll give it to you. Just please, let me go." She managed to speak, though it was very weak.

The voice chuckled once more. "You already know what I want, Alice. I'm not settling for anything less than that. But I know you won't give it up. Now tell me, where have you hidden it?"

Arthur cocked his head to the side a bit in confusion. "What is he talking about?" He questioned, expecting an answer.

Alice shook her head, trying to keep herself together. "No. I refuse to give it up to something as despicable as you are." She said, the malice practically dripping from her words. "You threaten to destroy Wonderland and I'm afraid I cannot allow you to do that." She said strongly.

A dark figure then suddenly appeared behind her. Arthur couldn't make up a clear view of him, but it certainly wasn't human.

"You'd rather die for people who are insane and mad than go back to your children, safe and sound? How pathetic of you Alice. Really, I thought you loved your family." He said, making Arthur feel bitter.

Alice frowned, looking down with a solemn look on her face.

"I have a duty to Wonderland, as its ruler, to do whatever in my power to protect this land. My family will be alright… I've raised my children to be strong and be able to carry themselves. My husband is a good father… I have faith that they will not need me."

The words really reached her own son as he heard her speak. He desperately wanted to say that things did not turn out well after she left. They needed her. They still do.

Alice began to take off her coat, dropping it off to the side. Arthur gasped at what he saw. His mother… Oh his poor mother! She had an injury located on her chest, a lot of blood on her sweater. She was wearing her usual clothing she did back home… She was trying to hide what happened to her.

"Go ahead, kill me. But mark my words. One day you'll fall. Your madness impedes ours and it'll be your undoing."

The figure was silent but he began to move his arms.

"You silly psychotic bitch! You know nothing."

He grabbed Alice, wrapping his arms around her chest and breathed into her mouth a red smokiness. He held her tighter and tighter until suddenly he vanished into thin air, causing Alice to collapse onto the ground, struggling to get out another breath.

"Mum!" Arthur shouted as he watched his mum fall down. But he knew he couldn't help her. He only watched, the tears beginning to fall down onto his face.

After a few minutes, Alice gained enough strength to push herself off of the ground, coughing up some blood from the effort. Not much after the rabbit and Cheshire Cat were at her side, concerned about their ruler's wellbeing.

"Alice! Alice, what has he done to you!?" The Rabbit cried out in worry, hopping quickly to his friend's side.

Alice looked over to her friends, focusing on her breathing. She looked down and realised there was no more pool of blood on her shirt. It's as if she wasn't hurt at all, but she knew she was just granted something worse.

"Cheshire… Rabbit… I… I'm not going to be around for much longer." She said softly.

Rabbit shook his head, tearing beginning to fall. "No, don't say such nonsense Alice! We'll get you feeling better in no time!"

She shook her head, coughing again blood. "No… I won't be better. I must go home and say goodbye to my family."

"But Alice! I know you have other responsibilities, but what about Wonderland!?"

Cheshire only stared at Alice, trying to maintain his composure. "Yes, Alice. Wonderland is in need of its ruler. You cannot leave us again."

Alice didn't respond but sighed. "As of now, I'm no longer your ruler. I'm passing on the crown to my son… Arthur." She breathed out with effort.

As shocked at Cheshire and Rabbit seemed, as was Arthur as he was listening not too far from them.

Rabbit widened his eyes. "Y-your son!? But Alice, he's only a mere child! He cannot defend Wonderland! We need someone grown up and you're the only one who can do control this land!"

Alice shook her head, frowning at her friend. "I cannot help you anymore, my friend. You must wait until Arthur grows up then… He's our only hope. I knew that someday he'd be the one who'd look over this land… I know it. Let the Unknown do as he pleases. Make him believe he somehow rules Wonderland, but he shall crumble one day, on such a frabjous day. But until then… please, wait."

And with that being said, Alice slowly began to fade away, into nothingness. Arthur only watched, with tears still in his eyes, with so many questions in his mind. Questions that only Cheshire and Rabbit could possibly answer.

The same smokiness that transported Arthur to Tugley Wood appeared again in front of him and soon he was back at Hatter's home. The teen still had some tears on his cheeks, but he stopped crying. Like mum said once before going, he had to be strong. But he had so many questions in his head. Why him? Why did she say his name in her final moment at Wonderland?

"Are you alright, Arthur? You look saddened."

Arthur looked over to the Mad Hatter, who didn't look too concerned but was still nice enough to ask.

He nodded, wiping away any tears he had on his face. "Yes, I'm alright. Just a little sentimental. I haven't seen my mother since almost 10 years ago."

Everyone sighed. The feeling was mutual.

The dormouse nodded, yawning a little. "Well now, no need to get that upset over it… But I suppose she was your mother. I don't know how it feels to lose a mother. Never had one so I don't know, but I bet it hurts a lot."

Arthur crossed his arms across his chest, suddenly feeling an overwhelming feeling of rage within him towards this Unknown figure. Who was he and how dare he be the cause of his mother's cause of death.

He looked over to the Mad Hatter, who was currently sipping his tea and staring off into space.

"Hatter," He called him, getting his attention right away, "I have a feeling you know quite a bit about this Unknown person. Care to enlighten me?"

At that moment Arthur swore the Mad Hatter had a larger grin than the Cheshire Cat had.

* * *

**Ended on a bit of a sad note there, but it just got interesting! I wonder what Hatter has in store for Artie. Hmm...**

**Anyway, before I forget, while this fic is rated T it will eventually become a Rated M story because there will be more violent and graphic descriptions and smut. Yes, smut. I just wanted to have plot for once in one of my stories so I'm holding off on it for a bit (though it hurts -_-)**

**Hopefully by the beginning of next month or earlier I will have the next chapter posted up. See y'all later!**


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